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Thursday, December 31, 2015

As the year winds down, what better people to spend one of
the last days of 2015 with than two of our dearest friends?

On Tuesday Shane and I visited Leigh Hobbs, Dmetri Kakmi and their
dogs Snowy and Lulu at the cottage at Newstead that they occasionally house-sit. Although our previous visit there was only a few months back, it
seems like a lifetime ago. It was then that I collected the first of the
Eucalyptus leaves that became the basis for the Leaves of Absence archival prints.

On this occasion, I took along
the proofs to show Leigh and Dmetri and was gratified by their response. Bringing the work to where it all
began was deeply satisfying. It's been quite a journey, and a fitting one to end the year on.

Shane Jones and Leigh Hobbs

Leigh and Dmetri

Lulu and Snowy

One of many things we have in common is our love of film. Leigh has promised to
lend me this book in 2016

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

After the recent heatwave and with the likelihood of more to come, I suspect I'm not the only one who is dreaming of a white Christmas. May your days be merry and bright during the Festive Season and throughout the year ahead.

Our Christmas tree at Ballarat, December 2015

Our older, more diminutive, but much loved Melbourne tree, December 2015

Monday, December 21, 2015

Pictured above: the lino block for Cossodes
lyonetii Moth Woman. Pictured below:a trial proof pulled this afternoon, followed by an enlarged view
of the Cossodes lyonetii white moth, originally sourced from the CSIRO website. (The mask area of the linocut will be hand painted in similar
colours).

The completed edition of 33 will be part of Eventide,
a portfolio of linocuts curated by Rona Green. Works from the portfolio
will be exhibited at Mornington Peninsula Regional Gallery in May, 2016. Full details
of the portfolio and exhibition will be provided nearer the time.As mentioned in a previous post, I'm intending to take an extended break from linocuts in order to concentrate more fully on other facets of my work, most notably the ongoing series of Homo-insecta paintings and the Leaves of Absence digital prints, one of which is directly below:

Roundel (work in progress); digital print

Thumbnails of selected archival pigment prints - including alternative variations of two of the works - are shown on the proof sheet below:

2015 has been a particularly significant
year for the Goldfields Printmakers. In September,a folio of our work titled Not Born Digital traveled with GP founder Jimmy Pasakos to IMPACT9, the international
printmaking conference at Hangzhou,China. During October-November, the same works were exhibited at Ararat Regional Art Gallery in Victoria. Jimmy Pasakos, David Frazer and I were also part of Parallel Prints, a group show/exchange portfolio. Curated by Jimmy and New Zealand artist Mark Graver, it was simultaneously exhibited at the Art Gallery of Ballarat and Wharepuke
Print Studios, Kerikeri, New Zealand in early October. (To date, the Parallel Prints portfolio has been acquired by the Art Gallery of Ballarat, Federation University, Ballarat and the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart). In late October-early
November, two GP members, Dianne Longley and myself, were presenters at the
inaugural Mildura BMW Print Triennial.

Last Saturday, December 12, a number of us met for a
celebratory gathering in the elegant cafe at Bendigo Art Gallery (where, incidentally, they served the finest scones I've ever tasted).

In fact, our reason for meeting there was twofold. In
early 2016 several of the group (myself included) will be part of the
exhibition Elemental at Latrobe University Visual Arts Centre(VAC Gallery). It's conveniently located directly across the road, so this was a perfect
opportunity for us to discuss the exhibition at length with curator Josephine
Walsh and to familiarize ourselves with the gallery spaces. Elemental will run from 24 February-10 April, 2016. (Since Saturday's meeting, Josephine has received
confirmation that Elemental will also be exhibited at Light Square Gallery in Adelaide between 9 May- 3 June, 2016).

With the Year of Print 2016 nearly upon us, the Goldfields Printmakers are ready and set for another productive year.

Friday, December 11, 2015

As I mentioned
recently, two of my works, A Cabinet of
Moth Masks and Vignette Vitrine, have
been included in the exhibition Return to
Hanging Rock at the National Trust property, Mulberry Hill, the former home
of Picnic at Hanging Rock author Joan
Lindsay. (To view A Cabinet of Moth Masks and learn more
about the exhibition, go to Blog Post Sunday November 8 HERE).

Return to Hanging Rock doesn’t officially open until January 2, but can be previewed tomorrow for one day only at Mulberry Hill’s Twilight Christmas Festival between the hours of 2-7 pm. Unfortunately, I can’t attend because of an unavoidable clash, but am very much looking forward to seeing the exhibition in early 2016.

Vignette Vitrine was originally made for a group exhibition of
the same name at Hand Held Gallery, Melbourne in 2012. Pictured below are three
of the miniature silhouettes that reside in the small display case. To see inside it and
learn about the primary inspiration for the silhouette imagery, go HERE.

About me

I am a visual artist who makes paintings, drawings, prints and book art. In 2009 I founded Moth Woman Press, through which I publish my zines and limited edition books, beginning with ‘There was once… The collected fairy tales’, a small anthology of thirteen original stories illustrated with my prints, paintings and drawings. Currently I divide my time between Melbourne and Ballarat in South Western Victoria.